The Latests F1 Silliness

[SentraWV]

Anybody see the end of the race at Spa yesterday?

Long story short - Hamilton chases down Raikonen, tries a pass on the outside of the final chicane about 4 laps from the end. He doesn't pull it off, ends up going straight through the chicane and ahead of Raikonen (video here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wfLs2-w1NlY)). Hamilton lets Raikonen by (but only barely), tucks behind his gearbox, and overtakes in the next corner (La Source). All this seems to be moot a couple laps later when the rains come and Raikonen stuffs it into the wall. Hamilton wins.

Except he didn't - FIA penalized him 25 seconds for cutting the chicane, handing the win to Massa. Cries of favoratism from everyone outside of Italy.

Personall, given Raikonen's failure to finish the race, this seems like a "no harm, no foul" situation. It certainly looks a bit fishy.

[RobbieNelson]

1. Kimi didn't give him ANY room. IMHO, he did the right thing by cutting the chicane.
2. He let Kimi have the position back. Given, it was only by about a foot behind. But he did clearly get behind him.

Uh... that's enough for me to be OK with the move.

Why did they wait until after all the celebrations to call the penalty? Hamilton even did the post race interview as the winner. WTF?!?

[still scratching my head]

[SentraWV]

1. Kimi didn't give him ANY room. IMHO, he did the right thing by cutting the chicane.

Well, he could have not tried a banzai outside pass in the first place and/or whoa'd up sufficiently to no hit Kimi in the left hander. Or (as one BBC wog suggested today) he could have just let Kimi have La Source and get him at the end of the long straight at the top of the hill (with massive drafting help). It would have looked better that way, at least.

NP: Nektar, The Dream Nebula

[ShortysTRM]

You know, I'm very torn in this situation. I've been watching it since the race was over, and it was my favorite driver who reaped the benefits of it, but I still don't know what to think. There are great points from both sides [FYI both sides being the FIA and McLaren, as Ferrari had nothing to do with the investigation].

Something worth considering is the way that Hamilton has already been involved in many ridiculous incidents this year, and that if he continues to act so brazen, he may hurt someone. He's shoved drivers off the road in a much more violent fashion than Kimi did him, he's plowed into someone [Kimi, coincidentally] in pit lane who was stopped at a red light and took them both out of the race, and he's made arrogant comments about how other drivers can't defend against passes and then fell victim to the same driver's pass at the next race. He's no saint. Just because he's young, doesn't mean that the sport should take it easy on him, and just because he's penalized for doing dumb things, doesn't mean there's some bias for Ferrari. There's a lot more income/viewership at stake over Hamilton than anyone else, and they know that.

I would never have expected the penalty had we not heard that Hamilton was under investigation after the race. I thought it was an insane situation, and that both drivers made very risky moves, but I don't know that I would've given a penalty, especially one that changed the outcome of the race. I was glad to see Hamilton's enthusiasm after winning, and enjoyed listening to him describe the excitement of the closing laps. I can't even understand the physics of how someone could give up a position yet maintain a higher speed or some kind of advantage, but I don't think the FIA's making things up.


Here's some onboard footage of the incident. Long vid.
dWNN5W_B-Zk

[SentraWV]

Hamilton's not getting much love from his fellow drivers (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/motorsport/formula_one/7611152.stm):


f Lewis Hamilton was hoping for sympathy from his fellow Formula One drivers over his penalty at last weekend's Belgian Grand Prix, he was to be disappointed when he arrived in Monza on Thursday.

Hamilton's peers spoke almost as one in agreeing that the McLaren driver had broken the rules while racing with Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen at Spa.

And while most agree that the penalty for doing so - being stripped of victory - was over the top, sympathy for the 23-year-old was not exactly overflowing.

[ShortysTRM]

I also like his response to the situation:

Hamilton insists he acted fairly in the wake of the Spa chicane incident, by letting Kimi Raikkonen recover the lead as prescribed by the rules. Asked whether the slippery conditions might have masked his gesture, because his McLaren appeared to be much more effective in the rain, he had a playful pop at the Finn.

“I don’t think I had more grip,” he said. “It was the same for both of us, but that’s how he drives. If you don’t have the balls to brake late, that’s your problem.

“Those situations favour the driver who can feel the grip and put his car more on the edge – and I know I’m great in those conditions. I knew where to place my car and found the grip.”

I swear there's more to that interview, too, but I can't find it right now.